Throughput Analysis for Wavelet OFDM in Broadband Power Line Communications

Abstract: Windowed orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) and wavelet OFDM have been proposed as medium access techniques for broadband communications over the power line network by the standard IEEE 1901. Windowed OFDM has been extensively researched and employed in different fields of communication, while wavelet OFDM, which has been recently recommended for the first time in a standard, has received less attention. This work is aimed to show that wavelet OFDM, which basically is an Extended Lapped Transform-based multicarrier modulation (ELT-MCM), is a viable and attractive alternative for data transmission in hostile scenarios, such as in-home PLC. To this end, we obtain theoretical expressions for ELT-MCM of: 1) the useful signal power, 2) the inter-symbol interference (ISI) power, 3) the inter-carrier interference (ICI) power, and 4) the noise power at the receiver side. The system capacity and the achievable throughput are derived from these. This study includes several computer simulations that show that ELT-MCM is an efficient alternative to improve data rates in PLC networks.